Democratic Underground

1. online rallying center for assorted liberals, progressives and left-leaning independents that are fed up with the Democratic Party's right-wing tilt - and prove it by campaigning for right-wing candidates like Al Gore, John Kerry and Hillary Clinton<br>
2. a wet dream for Seattle's liberal peace pussies, who prefer to rant about a problem rather than lift a finger to fix it
3. hypocritical online forum that criticizes Republican corruption while ignoring the sins of the National Education Association, which supports the corrupt Democratic Party

Democratic Underground is a great place to keep up on current events and pick up some cool political nicknames, insults or one-liners. Now if I could just find a collection of armchair politicians who are interested in fixing a problem or two...

Microslave

A person who is duped or coerced into using Microsoft software.

Millions of Microslaves could win their freedom if they'd just get a Mac.

Micro$oft

The long version of M$; one of the most popular nicknames for Microsoft, a key member of the Seattle Mafia.

So how many consumers will Micro$oft screw today?

Microsoft Nicknames

Any of the numerous nicknames applied to one of the most disgusting corporations on the planet, along with its founder, Bill Gates (collectively known as Billysoft).

I'm sick and tired of getting Microshafted, Microscammed and Microfucked by Billysoft (aka Micro$oft M$), from Microsludge (e.g. Windoze, M$ Office, Internet Exploder) to brainless Microslaves and loud-mouthed Microsoft whores, from phony pHilanthropists with bad haircuts to black$Mail! (P.S. These are all examples of Microsoft Nicknames, which offer a powerful clue to GET A MAC.)

BlackM$ail

Blackmail perpetrated by Microsoft, or a situation that appears to be blackmail somehow associated with M$.

Can you guess which major corporation has been accused of blackM$ailing schools?

Microslug

One of many nicknames for Microsoft, this one hinting at the bureaucratic inertia and bloated code it has become famous for; generally synonymous with Microsloth.

Will Microslug release another Windows upgrade in our lifetime, or is Vista the end of the Road Ahead?

Invisible Republic

The fifth incarnation of the United States...

1) Democratic republic (for whites, at least)

2) More politicized nation with stronger federal government forged by the Civil War

3) Empire, with overseas possessions, beginning with the Spanish American War and annexation of Hawaii in 1898

4) Frighteningly corrupt and bizarre corporate conglomerate, as became frighteningly apparent after George W. Bush's theft of the White House in 2000 and the 9/11 terrorist attacks he exploited so ruthlessly

5) The next stage in the evolution of the United States, which can't be predicted with certainty but will hopefully be an "invisible republic" in the tradition of a campfire discussion featured in the late environmental activist Edward Abbey's book Desert Solitaire.

An Invisible Republic (or fifth republic) would presumably follow a fifth major revolution:

1) The "American Revolution," which ended with an independent United States

2) The Civil War, which freed the slaves but arguably did much to wreck the U.S. as a whole

3) The socialist revolution of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, which did so much to help American workers

4) The "flower power" rebellion of the 1960s and 1970s, which did so much for civil rights and the environment and perhaps helped end the war in Vietnam

5) It will probably take an even bigger movement, whether peaceful or violent, to wrest control of the U.S. from corporations and hold people like George W. Bush and Bill Gates accountable.